Unusual
by light at last
Summary: When it finally happened it was unusual, just like everything else about them.
1. Chapter 1

When it finally happened it was unusual, just like everything else about them.

It had been a long week. A hard case, squint drama. Finally, they wrapped everything up and ended up, as they did several times a week, at the diner. They'd been sitting in the same booth, ordering nearly the same thing, for seven years now, almost as long as they'd been partners.

He was, as usual, eating his slice of pie and periodically teasing her to try some. She was staunchly refusing and going on about the squint problems and how irrational the whole issue was, not really needing his response.

It went silent for a moment. The sort of comfortable silence that had become second nature after their first year of partnership. He kept working on his pie, she watched.

Then, she spoke.

"I think I would like to marry you."

Fortunately he'd swallowed that last bite of pie already, but he still managed to choke a little on his own spit. "What?" he exclaimed, drawing looks from the other diner patrons, although the staff had gotten used to their random outbursts.

"I believe it would be advantageous. I believe that your primary reason for not acting on your attraction to me is that you believe I would never marry you, which you find important. We've clearly shown that we can spend our lives together; we've done the spending the nights, the longer trips, we even lived together last year when you were shot again. And, I've already expressed my desire to have your child, but I now think that my child would benefit from having you as a father socially as well as genetically."

"Wow…Bones," he breathed, but she wasn't finished. She started again, and with his knowledge of her, he realized this was the really important part.

"Also, I think I might be in love with you."

"Wow, Bones," he repeated. Trying to pull himself together, he found it hard to breathe, let alone think. The fact was, he'd been in love with her without return for so long it had become as much a part of their relationship as the earlier bickering over pie. To find that she returned it knocked his world off its axis, but she'd opened up, and he couldn't leave her hanging. "Clearly, you already know how I feel, but can I at least take you out on one official date, propose myself, that kind of thing?"

"That sounds fine to me."

They had been unusual from the beginning. Why should the start of something new be any different?


	2. Chapter 2

**Well, some people asked for a little more of this universe, so here it is. I'm not as sure of this one, so opinions are welcome, as always. Also, I forgot this last chapter, so I don't own Bones. Go figure.**

When they finally go on their first date it's unusual, just like everything else about them.

He picks her up at the door. She wears the black dress he bought her in Vegas, which she has somehow never been able to wear for anyone else, though she would never admit to wearing any piece of clothing for anyone but herself. He half swallows his greeting when she opens the door, but for once she doesn't comment on it. She also lets him get away with opening her door at the car.

They go to a restaurant they like but her best friend doesn't. This is just a coincidence, of course. They stopped claiming they were "just partners" and settled on friends years ago, so they don't have to start the conversation with work related things to maintain "cover." The man at the door notes his hand at her back, and the clear comfort in their stance and asks how long they've been together. The man stares when he says, "This is our first date," and she says, "Ten years." They don't clarify.

They talk about everything, just like they always have, her family, his son, the squints, their pasts, together and apart. That alone makes it an odd first date, since there is no awkward small talk. They make their way through their meal, just talking. At some point he reaches across the table and takes her hand. At a near by table, a young woman coos to her date over how cute they are.

They order dessert (although this place doesn't have pie and he can't really believe it), and then finally they head out of the restaurant. Night has fallen fully now, and they climb back into the car, but he doesn't head back to her place. Instead he heads for the Lincoln Memorial, which for a long time has, like the diner and the Founding Fathers, been one of their places. They sit on the steps, she slides in right next to him and he wraps an arm around her.

Finally he speaks. "You know, I told you a while back that everything happens eventually. I was starting to believe this one was one thing that was never going to happen. At this point all I can say is I'm really glad it is. I know you think it's ridiculous, but I've always truly believed there was someone out there for everyone. I have to admit when we first met I didn't think it was you. You were beautiful and brilliant, still are, but you were so frustrating. I didn't know how to deal with someone who could challenge me that way, but I knew right away that I needed you, and not just because you make the bad guys unsafe. I guess what it comes down to is, I love you. Will you marry me?"

"You already know I'll marry you, and you know I love you. I still think it's irrational, but you seem to make me irrational regularly."

And then they share their first kiss. And she finally believes that breaking the laws of physics just might be possible.


End file.
